A NO Division of Prints and Photographs

THEME: European Exploration and Settlement, other • NATIONAL HISTORIC LANDMARKS Form 10-300 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR STATE: (Rev. 6-72) NATIONAL PARK SERVICE Pennsylvania COUNTY: NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES Delaware INVENTORY - NOMINATION FORM ______FOR NPS USE ONLY ENTRY DATE (Type all entries - complete applicable sections) ii COMMON: Governor Printz Park AND/OR HISTORIC: The Printzhof

STREET AND NUMBER: Taylor Avenue & Second Street CITY OR TOWN: CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT: Essington Penna. #7 COUNTY: Pennsylvania 42 Delaware ASL

CATEGORY ACCESSIBLE OWNERSHIP STATUS (Check One) TO THE PUBLIC

District Q Building Public Public Acquisition: XI Occupied Yes: O Restricted Site Q Structure Private |~1 In Process II Unoccupied gg Unrestricted D Object D Both | | Being Considered O Preservation work in progress a NO

PRESENT USE (Check One or More as Appropriate)

OWNER'S NAME: Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Historical and Museum Commission P(D :!^ STREET AND NUMBER: State Museum Building CITY OR TOWN: CODF Harrisburg Tennslyyania

COURTHOUSE, REGISTRY OF DEEDS, ETC: o 8 fl> c Register of Deeds M Z STREET AND NUMBER: f!^ -*1 pj Delaware County Courthouse n CITY OR TOWN: STATE fD

Media Pennsylvania 42

TITLE OF SURVEY: National Historic Landmarks DATE OF SURVEY: 1961 Federal State PI County Local DEPOSITORY FOR SURVEY RECORDS: Library of Congress/Annex STREET AND NUMBER: Division of Prints and Photographs CITY OR TOWN: Washington D.C. 11 (Check One)

Excellent D Good Q Fair ] Deteriorated Ruins O Unexposed CONDITION (Check One; (Check One) D Altered gj Unaltered Moved {gj Original Site

When Governor Printz began the construction of Fort New Gothenburg on Tinicum Island in 1643, the island was separated from the western bank of the Delaware by only a small stream. Today the stream is gone, and the island is part of the mainland, The log fort was built ma high point ; of the island, closely facing the river. On the shoreward side of the fort was the storehouse, also built of logs, and also fortified. Begun after the fort was the construction of the Printzhof; it was built of hewn logs, probably two stories high, and so arranged that it could be defended in case of attack. It contained ovens, two or more fireplaces with chimneys, made out of imported Swedish brick. The interior was constructed with Swedish lumber, and the windows had glass panes. The construction materials and the furnishings made the Printzhof one of the most elaborate structures in the New World. Clustered around the fort were the simple wooden houses of the settlers, and a log chapel. There were barns and other farming structures as well. Following the 1645 fire and subsequent explosion of the powder magazine, only a single barn remained. In 1646, the fort was rebuilt, as was a new church with a belfry, a free-standing structure alongside the church in the Swedish style. The Printzhof was rebuilt in an enlarged and more elaborate manner, but on the same general plan. Today the stone foundations of the Printzhof, uncovered by archeological excavation in 1937, are the only visible remains of the settlement. The ruins are contained in the seven acre Governor Printz Park, Aside from the uncovered foundations of the Printzhof, the park contains a statue of Johan Printz, and in the northwest corner, a maintenance shed. Bounded on the west by a hedgerow and fence, on the north and east by Second Street and Taylor Avenue respectively, and on the south by the Delaware River bank, the park, with its various trees and shrubs, is used primarily for recreation purposes. Across Second Street are private homes, and on the east and west are a restaurant and other commercial properties.

BOUNDARIES

Beginning at the SW .intersection of Taylor Avenue and Second Street, proceed, south along the fence marking the park boundary 913', thence west along the bank of the Delaware approximately 380', thence N along the western fence line 807', thence east at Second Street approximately 303';to the point of origin.

The contained property constitutes the extent of the open and relatively untouched land suitable for the archeological work necessary in developing the site. - ' I PERIOD (Check One or More as Appropriate) [~1 Pre-Columbian | Q 16th Century 18th Century 20th Century n 15th Century 6

SPECIFIC DATE(S) (If Applicable and Known) 1643-54

AREAS OF SIGNIFICANCE (Check One or More as Appropriate)

Abor iginal | | Education |g Political || Urban Planning f~l Prehistoric Q Engineering Q Religion/Phi G Other (Specify; D Historic |~] Industry losophy Q Agriculture [~] Invention Q Science [~| Architecture |~~| Landscape f~l Sculpture

D Art Architecture Q] Social/Human Q Commerce Q Literature itarian [~~| Communications Q Military Q Theater [~~| Conservation n Music Q Transportation

STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE

On Tinicum Island, now Essington, Pennsylvania, stood the capital of New Sweden from 1643-54, the first permanent European settlement in what was to become the colony and, later, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The settlement here was due largely to the energies of Governor Johan Printz, who constructed a log fort, "New Gothenburg", and within it his house, the "Printzhof", in addition to a log chapel, a storehouse, and a brewery. The site of the Printzhof is contained today in the seven acre H Governor Printz Park. Archeological excavations have uncovered the stone U foundations of the Printzhof, which are the only visible remains of the ID site. Of! HISTORY The infant colony of New Sweden on the Christina River at the site of modern Wilmington, Delaware, was virtually ignored by the homeland until the arrival in 1643 of Governor Printz, a large and imposing man who had LJJ been instructed to make New Sweden show a profit. He ordered the clearing of more land for agriculture, intensified the cultivation of yj tobacco, stepped up the beaver trade, and asserted the Swedish claim to a on large trading area. Printz expanded the area of settlement by establishing Fort New Gothenburg and the Printzhof on Tinicum Island, further up the Delaware. A great fire swept the settlement in the winter of 1645, and despite the great hardship, Printz set about at once to rebuild the capital. Lumber shipped from Sweden was used in the interior of the re constructed Printzhof, and two or more fireplaces with chimneys were constructed of brick. In addition, glass windows, drapes, and a library all contributed to make the Printzhof a very luxurious residence. The increased trading by the Swedes soom sparked the Dutch of New Netherland into a hostile rivalry which manifested itself in Peter Stuyvesant's construction of Fort Casimir at what is now New Castle. After having quelled one mutiny, Printz despaired of receiving adequate support and sufficient settlers from home. He gave Up his command in;.October, 1653, and returned to Sweden. His successor, Johan Rising, rashly seized Fort Casimir in the following year. His action was answered by Stuyvesant's capture of the entire Swedish colony a year later. The inhabitants, however, were allowed to continue their accustomed way of life. Amandus Johnson, Swedish Settlements on the Delaware, 1638-1644 2vols. (New York, 1911, reprinted 1970). Federal Writers' Project of the Works Progress Administration of New Jersey, The Swedes and Finns in New Jersey (Bayonne. N.J., 1938).

UATITUDE AND LONGITUDE COORDINATES LATITUDE AND LONGITUDE COORDINATES DEFINING A RECTANGLE LOCATING THE PROPERTY DEFINING THt <_ tiN T2.R POIN 1 OF A PKOPERTY OF LESS THAN TFN ACRES

LATITUDE LONGITUDE LONGITUDE Degrees Minutes Seconds Degrees Minutes Seconds Degrees Minutes Seconds Degrees Minutes Seconds NW UTM°18.474070.44"l2 170 ° ME

APPROXIMATE ACREAGE OF NOMINATED PROPERTY: J SLCTCQS m m COUNTY: COPE

COUNTY: 70 C NAME AND TITLE: Richard E. Greenwood, Survey Historian n ORGANIZATION Historic Sites Survey, Landmark Review Project STREET AND NUMBER: O 1100 L Street z CITY OR TOWN: TATE Washington ML, 11

As the designated State Liaison Officer for the Na I hereby certify that this property is included in the tional Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (Public Law 89-665), I hereby nominate this property for inclusion National Register. in the National Register and certify that it has been evaluated according to the criteria and procedures set forth by the National Park Service. The recommended level of significance of this nomination is: National n state D Local

Name

Title

U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE : 1973-729-147/1442 3-1 596J IV NE '71 20' •73 (LANSDOWNE) '76

The Rrintzhof UTM 7 Bridgeport Quad. N.J.-Pa. IJSGS 7.5' 18.U7l»070.Ua2170

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